Comparison

GoTalk® NOW LITE vs Bookshare Reader

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

GoTalk® NOW LITE

This communication app helps individuals with speech difficulties create personalized pages for expression. It offers adjustable layouts, recorded speech, text-to-speech, and an included symbol set. Additional features and unlimited pages are available through in-app purchases.

Highlights
  • Personalized communication pages
  • Adjustable page layouts
  • Recorded and text-to-speech capabilities
  • Included symbol set
  • Multiple page styles (Standard, Express, Scene)
  • Multimedia integration (video, music)
  • Full-feature scanning
Features
Read full description

Attainment has been making augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) tools for 25 years. Our experience is front and center in GoTalk NOW LITE, a communication app that introduces you to the flexibility, ease of use, and power of Attainment’s popular GoTalk NOW. GoTalk NOW LITE is a fully functional augmentative communication app for those who have difficulty speaking. Create up to three personalized communication pages in this free app! GoTalk NOW LITE has all the essentials of an effective AAC app, like adjustable page layouts, customizable navigation, recorded and text-to-speech capabilities, and an included symbol set. If you need more Communication Pages or the ability to share, simply upgrade your GoTalk NOW LITE to full GoTalk NOW Features via an in-app purchase. The new LITE offers three styles of communication pages: Standard, Express, and Scene. In Standard pages, the action occurs when the location is pressed. In Express pages, recorded or text-to-speech messages build in a speech bar and play in sequence when the bar is pressed. Scene pages are built around a single photo or image. When you arrange invisible hotspots over people or objects in the photo, the hotspots play speech, music, or videos! Feel free to mix and match pages within a communication book. Create a communication book with unique settings and up to 5 pages in length. Envision the impact of blending video, music, and jump to actions among your pages. Plus, GoTalk NOW LITE is a full-feature scanning app! Features: • Choose 1, 2, 4, 9, 16, 25 or 36 locations per page. • Use images from your iPad camera, photo library, or the GoTalk Image Library. • Search the Internet in-app for the perfect image or icon. • Purchase SymbolStix, PCS, or Widgit Symbols libraries in-app. • Crop, scale, or rotate an image using your fingers. • Combine multiple images in a single communication location. • Color pages, borders, and text with any hue. • Move and size text with your fingers so it feels just right. • Record your voice or use our free text-to-speech voice. • Add spoken labels (auditory cues) to any button. Great for scanning, guiding visually impaired users, and identifying any new or difficult vocabulary. • Trim videos in-app, and play them from any communication location. • Select our alternate video interface to pause or exit the video easily. • Link songs from your playlist to any communication location and control them with Pause/Play, Next, and Previous. • Include a core vocabulary button for extra quick access to important messages. • Create multimedia social stories and step-by-step instruction layouts by linking pages with an after action. •In-app purchase allows for back up of communication books via Dropbox or to any Mac or PC for safekeeping. • Ability to create multiple books with unlimited pages via in-app purchase. • Store and share interactive templates (each including speech, video, text, and jump to links) on our online gallery via in-app purchase. • Download and edit premade templates from Attainment’s collection on the public gallery available via in-app purchase. • Print and save communication book layouts via PDFs. • Access LITE with single or two-switch scanning. Attainment is well known for top-notch customer service. Email us with questions or comments and check our website for free webinars. And yes, we're happy to talk to you on the telephone!

About

Bookshare Reader

Access a vast library of ebooks designed for individuals with reading barriers. Enjoy high-quality audio narration and customize your reading experience with adjustable fonts, colors, and speeds. Continue reading seamlessly from where you left off.

Highlights
  • Access millions of ebooks
  • High-quality audio narration
  • Customizable reading experience
  • Adjustable font size and colors
  • Follow along with highlighted text
  • Offline reading
Features
Read full description

Get the official Bookshare Reader app. Access millions of ebooks from Bookshare, the world's largest library of ebooks for people with reading barriers like dyslexia, blindness, low vision, and physical disabilities. Listen to books in high quality audio and customize your reading experience in ways that work for you. Read bestsellers, new releases, textbooks and educational books, children’s books, young adult, mysteries, biographies, and more. Read your way with these customizable features: • Listen to books in high quality audio • Adjust reading speed, font size, and colors • Follow along with highlighted text • Navigate by page and chapter • Stop reading and pick up from your last spot • Download books and read offline To use Bookshare Reader, you must have a Bookshare membership. Learn more by visiting the Bookshare website.

Screenshots

Bookshare Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: GoTalk® NOW LITE at 4.2 against Bookshare Reader's 3.3. GoTalk® NOW LITE also leads on review sentiment (53% vs 36%). Bookshare Reader's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ratings volume (68 vs 17). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. GoTalk® NOW LITE sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Bookshare Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

GoTalk® NOW LITE holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 17 and 68 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 53% of GoTalk® NOW LITE's written reviews are positive against 36% of Bookshare Reader's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GoTalk® NOW LITE ships an update every 5 weeks, Bookshare Reader every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
GoTalk® NOW LITE versus Bookshare Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGoTalk® NOW LITEBookshare Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (17 ratings) — better3.3 (68 ratings)
Positive reviews52.6% of reviews — better35.7% of reviews
Number of ratings1768 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size235 MB81 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAttainment CompanyBenetech

Customer experience

GoTalk® NOW LITE

All ratings17 ratings
Positive76.5%
Neutral5.9%
Negative17.6%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive52.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative47.4%

Bookshare Reader

All ratings68 ratings
Positive51.5%
Neutral13.2%
Negative35.3%
Written reviews56 reviews
Positive35.7%
Neutral21.4%
Negative42.9%

Bugs and requests

GoTalk® NOW LITE

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Bookshare Reader

Reported bugs

42 issues
  • Prolonged pauses in text-to-speech
  • Library not syncing across devices
  • Reading lists not syncing
  • Reading progress not saved across devices
  • Manga stuck on copyright page
Show 37 more
  • Pages disappear during reading
  • Trouble downloading books
  • Frequent app crashes
  • App won't load books
  • App shuts down when typing
  • App crashing repeatedly
  • Books disappearing from library
  • Cannot download added books
  • Search tab closes the app
  • Poor VoiceOver compatibility
  • App crashes on any click
  • Text-to-speech voice change kicks user out
  • Copyright issues preventing audio playback
  • Download errors
  • Playback stops when screen is locked
  • Clunky user interface
  • Picture books not displaying images
  • Unable to play videos from other sources
  • Form controls not coded correctly for VoiceOver
  • Cannot delete searched titles from library
  • App requires screen to be on for reading
  • Blank screen after orientation change
  • Too many bugs and crashes
  • Next chapter fails to load
  • Blank white page after pausing and resuming
  • Table of Contents only shows first few chapters
  • App displays as phone screen on iPad
  • Cannot access reading lists
  • Synthesized speech has limited control
  • Speech randomly cuts off
  • Reading stops if phone ringer is off
  • Pause/Play restarts from chapter beginning
  • Text-to-speech voices do not indicate language
  • Voice selection process is cumbersome
  • No functional stop and start button
  • Limited speaking speed options
  • Paragraph by paragraph reading limitation

Requested features

38 requests
  • Fix prolonged pauses in text-to-speech
  • Sync library across devices
  • Sync reading lists across devices
  • Save reading progress across devices
  • Fix manga page navigation
Show 33 more
  • Fix disappearing pages bug
  • Improve book download reliability
  • Fix app crashes
  • Fix app shutdown when typing
  • Improve VoiceOver compatibility
  • Allow adjustment of speaking rate by specific value
  • Make reading lists accessible
  • Add highlighting for textbooks
  • Improve navigation of Contents menu
  • Highlight current location in Contents menu
  • Include missing video content in textbooks
  • Fix copyright issues for audio playback
  • Allow background playback
  • Add ability to listen to human-narrated audiobooks
  • Add 'Read Now' for periodicals
  • Add VoiceOver gestures for page turning
  • Add percentage of reading completed on mobile devices
  • Make downloaded books tab default on opening app
  • Fix inability to delete searched titles
  • Add 'where am I' feature (page/percentage)
  • Fix blank screen after orientation change
  • Make app accessible for students without teacher assignment
  • Fix next chapter loading issue
  • Fix blank white page after pause
  • Fix incomplete Table of Contents
  • Improve app scaling on iPad
  • Fix inability to access reading lists
  • Allow users to choose which word reader begins reading
  • Fix paragraph by paragraph reading limitation
  • Indicate language for text-to-speech voices
  • Improve voice selection process
  • Add functional stop and start button
  • Increase speed options for text-to-speech

In-app purchases

10 purchases

GoTalk® NOW LITE

One-time10
  • Kenny$0.99
  • Nelly$0.99
  • Ryan$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Tracy$0.99
  • Will$0.99
  • Ella$11.99
  • Josh$11.99
  • Ready-Set-Communicate$19.99
  • English (US) Keywords$59.99
  • Upgrade to GoTalk NOW Features$119.99
None

Bookshare Reader

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is GoTalk® NOW LITE free?
GoTalk® NOW LITE is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bookshare Reader free?
Bookshare Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, GoTalk® NOW LITE or Bookshare Reader?
GoTalk® NOW LITE is rated higher. GoTalk® NOW LITE averages 4.2 out of 5 from 17 ratings, while Bookshare Reader averages 3.3 from 68 ratings.
Do GoTalk® NOW LITE or Bookshare Reader have ads?
Neither GoTalk® NOW LITE nor Bookshare Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GoTalk® NOW LITE or Bookshare Reader?
GoTalk® NOW LITE ships an update every 5 weeks, and Bookshare Reader every 3 weeks. Most recently, GoTalk® NOW LITE was updated on November 1, 2026 and Bookshare Reader on November 3, 2026.

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